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Kenneth E. Montague Series in Oil and Business History
Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch (Volume 22)
When the first gusher blew in at Spindletop, near Beaumont, Texas, in 1901, petroleum began to supplant cotton and cattle as the economic engine of the state and region. Very soon, much of the workforce migrated from the cotton field to the oilfield, following the lure of the wealth being created by black gold.
The early decades of the twentieth century witnessed the development of an oilfield culture, as these workers defined and solidified their position within the region’s social fabric. Over time, the work force grew more professionalized, and technological change attracted a different type of laborer.
Bobby D. Weaver grew up and worked in the oil patch. Now, drawing on oral histories supplemented and confirmed by other research, he tells the colorful stories of the workers who actually brought oil wealth to Texas. Drillers, shooters, toolies, pipeliners, teamsters, roustabouts, tank builders, roughnecks . . . each of them played a role in the frenzied, hard-driving lifestyle of the boomtowns that sprouted overnight in association with each major oil discovery.
Weaver tracks the differences between company workers and contract workers. He details the work itself and the ethos that surrounds it. He highlights the similarities and differences from one field to another and traces changing aspects of the work over time. Above all, Oilfield Trash captures the unique voices of the laboring people who worked long, hard hours, often risking life and limb to keep the drilling rigs “turning to the right.”
The early decades of the twentieth century witnessed the development of an oilfield culture, as these workers defined and solidified their position within the region’s social fabric. Over time, the work force grew more professionalized, and technological change attracted a different type of laborer.
Bobby D. Weaver grew up and worked in the oil patch. Now, drawing on oral histories supplemented and confirmed by other research, he tells the colorful stories of the workers who actually brought oil wealth to Texas. Drillers, shooters, toolies, pipeliners, teamsters, roustabouts, tank builders, roughnecks . . . each of them played a role in the frenzied, hard-driving lifestyle of the boomtowns that sprouted overnight in association with each major oil discovery.
Weaver tracks the differences between company workers and contract workers. He details the work itself and the ethos that surrounds it. He highlights the similarities and differences from one field to another and traces changing aspects of the work over time. Above all, Oilfield Trash captures the unique voices of the laboring people who worked long, hard hours, often risking life and limb to keep the drilling rigs “turning to the right.”
248 pages, Paperback
First published August 24, 2010
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September 16, 2019by Jon P. Tritsch
Many people who have studied the oil booms of Texas are probably familiar with the cast of characters involved with them. Names like Pattillo Higgins and Texaco have certainly made their marks of fame on Texas oil patch histories. They had the capital, the expertise and the drive to accomplish the exploration and drilling for crude, and the subsequent transporting and refining into petroleum products. Little has been written about the nameless men in the field who performed the often dangerous tasks necessary for the drilling and extracting the crude oil from the earth. This book rectifies that, as the author actually worked in the oilfields himself.
Author Bobby Weaver’s more than 20 years of experience in the oilfields and petrochemical industries makes him well qualified to tell the story of the Texas petroleum worker. In the book’s introduction, he explains how the nucleus of his book is made up of about 350 oral history interviews he collected from various oral history collections from across the state. Weaver’s introduction also provides an extremely useful map featuring the major oil boom areas of Texas discussed in each chapter. Chapter one features the initial Lucas oil gusher at Spindletop, preceded by a brief mention of the almost forgotten smaller 1894 oil strike near Corsicana, which launched the state’s first oil boom along the Gulf Coast from 1901-1910.
The next two chapters stay focused on the Gulf Coast activities but also describe the lives and work of the oil field drillers, teamsters, rig builders, shooters, roustabouts, and casing crews. By the end of these chapters, the reader will certainly become more familiar with these activities and gain a better understanding of the differences between the traditional drilling for oil with cable versus the newer technology of rotary drilling. Each of the next four chapters covers these same topics in the other mentioned major oil boom areas of Texas: North Central Texas 1910-1922, Panhandle 1919-1930, East Texas 1930-1935, and Permian Basin 1923-1960. In addition, the author relates how these boom strikes affected these areas and the problems and solutions that accompanied them. In the remaining chapters, Weaver describes how technology, the Great Depression, the Second World War and improvements in the drilling and transporting of both oil and workers caused oil patch activities to change over the years. The book’s final chapter features a glossary of words and phrases associated with the petroleum industry.
For those unfamiliar with the oil industry, this is an accessible book. Weaver does an exemplary job in giving a short paragraph summary at the conclusion of each chapter. There are numerous pictures throughout the book and copious notes for each chapter as well. An extensive bibliography shows the research Weaver put into this work. A minor geographical correction should be noted on page 53 concerning the location of the town of Mineola. It is in Wood County instead of the stated Kaufman County.
Oilfield Trash: Life And Labor In The Oil Patch, no. 22 in the Kenneth E. Montague series in oil and business history, merits a strong recommendation for public and college libraries and for collections in Texas history and the petroleum industry.
https://us14.campaign-archive.com/?u=...
Many people who have studied the oil booms of Texas are probably familiar with the cast of characters involved with them. Names like Pattillo Higgins and Texaco have certainly made their marks of fame on Texas oil patch histories. They had the capital, the expertise and the drive to accomplish the exploration and drilling for crude, and the subsequent transporting and refining into petroleum products. Little has been written about the nameless men in the field who performed the often dangerous tasks necessary for the drilling and extracting the crude oil from the earth. This book rectifies that, as the author actually worked in the oilfields himself.
Author Bobby Weaver’s more than 20 years of experience in the oilfields and petrochemical industries makes him well qualified to tell the story of the Texas petroleum worker. In the book’s introduction, he explains how the nucleus of his book is made up of about 350 oral history interviews he collected from various oral history collections from across the state. Weaver’s introduction also provides an extremely useful map featuring the major oil boom areas of Texas discussed in each chapter. Chapter one features the initial Lucas oil gusher at Spindletop, preceded by a brief mention of the almost forgotten smaller 1894 oil strike near Corsicana, which launched the state’s first oil boom along the Gulf Coast from 1901-1910.
The next two chapters stay focused on the Gulf Coast activities but also describe the lives and work of the oil field drillers, teamsters, rig builders, shooters, roustabouts, and casing crews. By the end of these chapters, the reader will certainly become more familiar with these activities and gain a better understanding of the differences between the traditional drilling for oil with cable versus the newer technology of rotary drilling. Each of the next four chapters covers these same topics in the other mentioned major oil boom areas of Texas: North Central Texas 1910-1922, Panhandle 1919-1930, East Texas 1930-1935, and Permian Basin 1923-1960. In addition, the author relates how these boom strikes affected these areas and the problems and solutions that accompanied them. In the remaining chapters, Weaver describes how technology, the Great Depression, the Second World War and improvements in the drilling and transporting of both oil and workers caused oil patch activities to change over the years. The book’s final chapter features a glossary of words and phrases associated with the petroleum industry.
For those unfamiliar with the oil industry, this is an accessible book. Weaver does an exemplary job in giving a short paragraph summary at the conclusion of each chapter. There are numerous pictures throughout the book and copious notes for each chapter as well. An extensive bibliography shows the research Weaver put into this work. A minor geographical correction should be noted on page 53 concerning the location of the town of Mineola. It is in Wood County instead of the stated Kaufman County.
Oilfield Trash: Life And Labor In The Oil Patch, no. 22 in the Kenneth E. Montague series in oil and business history, merits a strong recommendation for public and college libraries and for collections in Texas history and the petroleum industry.
https://us14.campaign-archive.com/?u=...
April 9, 2020
Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch by Bobby D. Weaver is fascinating for those of us interested in the history of Texas oilfields, the history of oilfield workers and oilfield history in general. The scope of the book is broadly 1900-1960 - a slice of time during which everything changed in terms of labor pools, technology, transportation, the workforce and even culture. And the focus is on the laborers - many of whom were uneducated, inexperienced, young and seeking both adventure and fortune in the oilfield.
The author does a great job of making what could be a really boring and singular story interesting and engaging. He brings in first-person interviews and newspaper accounts, but also scholarly writing and technical information to shed light on everything from the benefits and history of drilling techniques, to what life was like in a boomtown, to why farmers were such great oilfield worker and who does what on a rig.
Frankly, it was pretty fascinating!
The book is written chronologically and geographically, with the first three chapters focusing on various aspects of the the Spindletop discovery in 1901 and the Gulf Coast fields through 1910. Each subsequent chapter details another set of discoveries, including those in north Texas (190-1922) the Panhandle (1919-1930), east Texas (1930-1935),, west Texas (1923-1940) and finally Texas oilfields in WWII and the post-war years . The final two chapters look at the oilfield culture and the unique language that grew up around it.
Although filled with history, Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch doesn't read like a textbook. It is engaging, and written in a style that's both clear and accessible to someone without a lot of experience or understanding of the topic.
The book also includes a complete bibliography for people like me who are always wanting a bit more information.
Whether you're just randomly curious about the the history of oilfield workers, or seek a deeper historical and cultural context to an industry that, in many ways, defines Texas, Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch by Bobby D. Weaver is a winner.
The author does a great job of making what could be a really boring and singular story interesting and engaging. He brings in first-person interviews and newspaper accounts, but also scholarly writing and technical information to shed light on everything from the benefits and history of drilling techniques, to what life was like in a boomtown, to why farmers were such great oilfield worker and who does what on a rig.
Frankly, it was pretty fascinating!
The book is written chronologically and geographically, with the first three chapters focusing on various aspects of the the Spindletop discovery in 1901 and the Gulf Coast fields through 1910. Each subsequent chapter details another set of discoveries, including those in north Texas (190-1922) the Panhandle (1919-1930), east Texas (1930-1935),, west Texas (1923-1940) and finally Texas oilfields in WWII and the post-war years . The final two chapters look at the oilfield culture and the unique language that grew up around it.
Although filled with history, Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch doesn't read like a textbook. It is engaging, and written in a style that's both clear and accessible to someone without a lot of experience or understanding of the topic.
The book also includes a complete bibliography for people like me who are always wanting a bit more information.
Whether you're just randomly curious about the the history of oilfield workers, or seek a deeper historical and cultural context to an industry that, in many ways, defines Texas, Oilfield Trash: Life and Labor in the Oil Patch by Bobby D. Weaver is a winner.
October 1, 2021
Very informative but a dry read on the different positions in the oilfield at the dawn on the industry in the United States.
April 24, 2024
I read this as background for a novel. It has good information, though I wish it had contained more stories of the workers.
October 21, 2011
I read this book as part of my background research for my writing project set in West Texas during the 1950s oil boom. The first-hand stories from oil workers are fascinating, and the book gave me a good overall picture of what it was like to work in the oil patch during that time period. Very informative, yet easy to read.
December 28, 2012
I've been commenting on this work by Weaver in my last two Plains Folk columns for Prairie Public radio. Obviously, I think highly of it. Weaver sets down the vocabulary, the occupational habits, and the life of early oilfield workers on the southern plains. He does a great service, and builds a foundation for additional works to extend knowledge across the West.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews